


I Need You (I Always Need You)

by eddiemylove



Category: IT (2017), IT - Stephen King
Genre: M/M
Language: English
Status: Completed
Published: 2018-04-18
Updated: 2018-04-18
Packaged: 2019-04-24 14:01:24
Rating: Not Rated
Warnings: Graphic Depictions Of Violence
Chapters: 1
Words: 2,037
Publisher: archiveofourown.org
Story URL: https://archiveofourown.org/works/14356962
Author URL: https://archiveofourown.org/users/eddiemylove/pseuds/eddiemylove
Summary: Things at home are worse than usual for Richie.A lot worse.The only person who Richie trusts enough to call...is Eddie.ANGST AGAIN im sorry





	I Need You (I Always Need You)

Richie strolled home, taking his time. He told himself it was so he could smell the flowers, enjoy the view. Only Eddie knew the truth. He was the only one who wouldn’t believe the lies that flew so easily out of Richie’s mouth when he showed up at school with black eyes and bruised ribs. He was the one who held Richie as he cried, not ever pressing him to tell but _knowing,_ and listening when Richie finally opened up. He left his window open, never caring what time of the night Richie would slid through, often bleeding, sometimes crying, always drained of energy. Eddie always slid small compliments in his words, never saying anything too harshly, trying to build up the confidence _they_ always knocked down. Richie didn’t deserve Eddie- he didn’t deserve any of them- but it would ruin him to leave Eddie. That was another flaw- his stupid selfishness. All the Losers would be far better off without him, Richie knew that.

 

Eventually, no matter how many side streets he took, how slow he ambled, Richie had to end up at home. He took a deep breath. _Maybe it won’t be that bad today._ He opened the door and immediately knew how wrong he was.

The stench of alcohol was stronger than usual, and there was yelling coming from the kitchen. Richie entered the kitchen- cautiously- and the eyes of his parents flicked to him. His mother was smoking a cigarette, his dad drinking a beer. There was smashed glass littering the whole kitchen floor. There was spilt alcohol- Rum? Whisky? Richie didn’t know. He’d never drank- ever. Not one drop. He was too terrified.

‘Right on time- the mistake is home!’ Wentworth Tozier, always a pleasant man, sneered.

‘Don’t call him that.’ Maggie said half-heartedly. Richie knew she didn’t mean it. She was only saying it to argue with Wentworth.

‘What are we fighting about today?’ Richie said, treading lightly over the glass, past his glaring father, and opened the fridge.

‘Empty! Hey, that’s the seventh- eighth week you’ve forgotten to buy any food? I’m not surprised.’

‘Don’t talk to us like that!’ Maggie yelled. ‘You’re an ungrateful, selfish little bastard. You wouldn’t be fucking alive without us- don’t treat us like this.’

‘You should be glad you’re even allowed in my _house,_ after the way you turned out. Slimy disgusting kid.’ Wentworth grumbled, taking a swig from his little bottle of magic.

‘Fuck you, dad. The only reason I’m still fucking alive is because I’ve been supporting myself since I was _thirteen-’_

His father roared, swinging his bottle at Richie. Richie fell, collapsing to the ground with a scream, his head bashing into the shards of glass already peppering the floor, embedding themselves in his hands, his wrists, his back.

‘DON’T YOU DARE TALK TO US LIKE THAT YOU UNGRATEFUL SON OF A BITCH!’ he screamed, kicking Richie’s side. Tears were spilling out of his eyes- _no, they can’t see me weak-_ mixing with the blood, creating pale red rivers running down his cheeks. His father knelt to the ground, swung a fist at Richie’s cheek- right where a piece of glass was embedded in his skin.

 

Richie cried out a twisted, horrific mix of pain and fear. His whole body convulsed as his father hit him, kicked him, screamed at him unintelligible words with a wild untamable look in his eyes again and again and again until Richie’s brain couldn’t comprehend the pain anymore and he went numb. But he refused to black out. He didn’t know- fuck he couldn’t tell how far this would go. Eventually, _something,_ maybe the tears or the sobs or the screams or even Maggie yelling at Wentworth from across the kitchen must have pierced the solid wall of alcohol and with a final halfhearted kick at Richie, Wentworth left the house slamming the door behind him.

Richie rolled onto his side, curling in on himself. He briefly registered his mother leaving the house, presumably to go to the bar down the street and forget about this. Richie could feel himself slipping away, and as much as he wanted to disappear into the ground and he didn’t want to be passed out on the kitchen floor when his father came home. But he knew he wouldn’t be able to get up and sort this out himself. He closed his eyes, trying to sleep. _Fuck. What am I going to do?_ A hazy image floated to the front of his brain. _Eddie._ His phone wasn’t far away. Richie dragged himself there. A mere 3 meters seemed like 300.Richie yeled through the agony, black spots swimming through his vision, and by the time Richie reached it he was barely able to see or hear. He reached up, thankfully being able to reach it without standing up, pulling his phone off the counter so it fell by his side. With shaky hands that turned the screen red Richie dialed the number he knew without even thinking and held it to his ear, trying to choke back the tears that wouldn’t stop coming.

‘Rich?’

‘Eds.’ Richie choked out, unable to say more than that one syllable.

‘Holy shit, Richie- what’s wrong? Where are you?’

Richie tried to find the word, tried to pick it out of the mess in his brain.

‘Rich- Richie, stay with me. Are you at your house?’

‘Yeah- Eds, fuck, Eddie-’

‘I’m on my way. Don’t move, baby.’

‘I…’ The line went dead and Richie dropped the phone by his side. _Couldn’t move if I tried._ Richie closed his eyes and let his mind disperse.

 

He awoke to the sound of glass crunching and quiet cursing. Richie heard Eddie kneel beside him, felt his presence like someone feeling the sun on their skin after years living underground.

‘Richie- fuck- ok Richie, do you have any first aid?’

Richie nodded, grimacing as he felt a shard of glass embedding itself deeper into his head.

‘Your bathroom?’

Richie nodded again.

‘Richie, we need to get you up there. Please, baby, find whatever energy you have left. I’m right with you.’

Eddie slipped his fingers into Richie’s, trying not to touch any cuts. He winced as Richie pulled himself up, Richie being in obvious agony. Eddie slung his arm around Richie, supporting nearly all his weight. They stumbled up the stairs together, Richie crying through it all. It took them a good five minutes, but they eventually reached the upstairs bathroom and Eddie got Richie to sit on top of the toilet whilst he sorted out what to do.

 

Richie’s shirt was soaked in blood and it would only make things tricker for Eddie to get the glass out. He cut the shirt away and tossed it on the floor beside him.

‘You trying to get some, Eds?’ Richie hissed out.

Eddie smirked. ‘You wish, Tozier. You’d never be able to do anything in that state.

‘Mocking my weakness, are we?’

Eddie smiled, shaking his head. Only Richie was able to make a joke about something like this.

There seemed to be no glass in his legs, or at least they weren’t _bleeding_ , so Eddie straddled Richie’s lap and got to removing the glass in his torso with tweezers, dropping them into a dish he had set on the counter next to him.

‘Kinky.’

‘What the hell goes on in your brain, Rich?’

‘You don’t want to know.’A sharp intake of breath as Eddie pulled out another shard of glass. Richie’s tears had stopped now and Eddie was glad for it. He didn’t think he’d ever get used to seeing Richie broken. He hated it more than anything in the world.

 

It took nearly two hours for Eddie to get all the glass out of Richie’s torso and head, so long that by the time he was finished it was nearly 9pm. Some of the cuts needed stitches, but Richie hardly reacted to that. Eddie doubted the pain was anywhere on the spectrum as what had happened before he’d gotten there.

While Richie showered, scrubbing at all the blood matted in his hair, getting every remnant of blood out of every inch of skin, Eddie took to cleaning the kitchen. He swept the glass, mopped the floor (whilst crying and trying not to scream because that was _Richie’s blood)_ and threw out all the empty bottles.

He finished cleaning and entered Richie’s room to him towelling his hair, wearing only fresh blue jeans.

Now the blood was gone, Eddie could see all the new bruises and scars that hadn’t been there a week before. Eddie had always known  _ some  _ level of abuse was going on, but he hadn’t known it had gotten worse.  _ How did I not know- god I’m stupid.  _ Eddie crossed the floor in an instant, touching his fingers lightly to the bruises.

 

‘I really liked that shirt.’ Richie said. Eddie raised an eyebrow.

‘Yeah? Well I really  _ love  _ you and look at what happened there. A shirt for your healing is a pretty good trade if you ask me.’

There was silence for a second and then Eddie’s arms were sliding around Richie’s neck, Richie’s encircling Eddie’s waist.

‘I’m sorry.’ Richie said into his hair.

‘For what?’ Eddie said, concern laced in his tone.

‘Not telling you it had gotten worse. Didn’t- I didn’t want to burden you.’

Eddie sighed. He broke the hug and they both sat on Richie’s bed, Richie in between Eddie’s legs with his head on Eddie’s chest. Eddie laced his fingers through Richie’s hair and took his hand, rubbing circles into his palm with his thumb. 

‘When did it start getting worse, Rich?’

‘Depends.’

‘Richie.’

‘Few weeks. But never this bad.’

 

Eddie was crying again. He didn’t even know he was until one of the tears fell into Richie’s hair. Richie twisted, looking up at Eddie and using his free hand to wipe the tears away from Eddie’s cheeks.

‘Eds baby, why are you crying-’

‘I should have known. It doesn’t matter that you didn’t tell me, I should have been smart enough to figure it out. Fuck, Richie, you know you can’t stay here. You don’t graduate for two years and I only see your parents getting worse. You can’t be here a day longer.’

Richie settled back down , his head falling back against Eddie’s chest. ‘There’s nowhere for me to go, Eds. I don’t have a choice.’

‘You could go to Bills. There’s a spare room next to Georgie’s and his parents have always liked you since for some reason you’ve always been polite to them-’

‘But polite enough to _live_ there, Eddie? I don’t know, man, the Denbrough’s are cool but…’

‘They aren’t heartless. We explain the situation to them. They wouldn’t let you stay here after we tell them.’

Richie sighed and Eddie knew he was getting through.

‘It’s true that my parents wouldn’t even notice me gone-’

Eddie flinched at that.

‘-but I don’t have any money to pay the Denbroughs for my care and no one’s dumb enough to hire me.’ Richie said bitterly.

‘I’ll help you get a job-’

‘Eddie, this town hates me. All my teachers think I cheat even though I never have, every shop owner thinks I steal when I wouldn’t do that in a million years and all the parents think I’m sleeping with their daughters or in your case, turning their son gay.’

‘Step by step, Richie. We’ll go to the Denbroughs now and see where we go from there.’

Richie closed his eyes and didn’t speak for long enough that Eddie was beginning to wonder if he was asleep.

‘Ok.’ he said.

Eddie leaned down and kissed the top of Richie’s head. ‘Thank you, Chee.’

‘I don’t deserve you, Eddie.’

‘You.. you can’t think like that, Richie. It’s going to ruin you.’

‘Fuck, I love you Eds.’

‘I know.’

Richie twisted around again to meet Eddie’s gaze. ‘Did you… did you just Han Solo me?’

‘Yup.’ Eddie said, smiling at Richie. ‘But I love you too.’

Richie pushed himself up onto his elbows, fully twisting in Eddie’s lap, and Eddie leaned down until their lips met into a soft, innocent kiss.

‘I’m getting out of here.’

**Author's Note:**

> Ok! So this is my second fic ever, hope you enjoyed <3  
> I'm gonna write a few more one shots and then start a big long chapter fic which I think you all will enjoy (It is, ofc, Reddie)  
> Again, love you all.  
> \- Iz


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